Just a Dream
by Kr1411
Summary: In which the Flash timeline never happened. (Worry not, Arrow still did)
1. Chapter 1

"Hey, Barry, it's been a week since you were struck by lightning, I think it's time for you to wake up."

"Barry, it's been a month, I think you need to wake up. You've been asleep a month too long."

"Barry, please wake up, it's been nearly two months. I… Detective Pretty Boy asked me out to coffee, and I said yes, but you need to wake up so you can approve of him. Dad hasn't been the same since you were struck by lightning. He's been… closed off, like if you don't wake up, he'll have nothing left to live for. Barry, you're affecting all of us, we need you to come back."

"Barry, I don't know if you can hear me, but today's your birthday, and I know you can't make a wish, so I'll make it for you. Barry, please wake up. I even bought you a cake, and I don't want to eat it alone, so please, just… wake up."

"Barry, as of today, you've been asleep for nearly half a year, it's not funny anymore. I overheard dad arguing with the doctors about pulling the plug, and I'm afraid that if you don't wake up, they might not go to dad first. Barry, please, just… just wake up. For me?"

"Bartholomew Henry Allen, you've been asleep for a full year. Why didn't you tell me you knew Oliver Queen? Him and two other people apparently come to visit you a lot, and somehow, I haven't seen them until today. Even when you wake up, I don't know if I can forgive you for this… Of course I can, not hearing your voice for a full year… Barry, please, I don't know if _anyone_ can do this anymore."

Iris sighed, as she got up. She placed her hand on Barry's, another tear falling down her face. She looked up at the heart monitor. He hasn't flatlined for nearly four months, but that didn't mean anything to her. She still felt like he would die whenever she walked away from him.

Barry's brain waves apparently spiked around the same time, but other than that, the doctors said he still wasn't waking up.

"Hey baby doll, I think it's time to go," Joe said, entering the room. Joe and Iris had this thing where they would both go see Barry, then Iris would leave for five minutes, and they would trade places after that time. They thought of it as their ways of keeping each other sane.

Iris sighed. "Barry, please wake up soon," she said, as usual, before following Joe out of the room.

"Eddie called, he said you weren't answering your cell," Joe said, once they were in the hall. Iris took her phone out of her pocket and said, "Tell him I turned it off. Honestly, he should know I turn it off every time I come to this god-forsaken place," as she turned it on.

Joe chuckled, but like it has been the last twelve months, it was forced. Neither of them could laugh, not when Barry has been comatose for a whole _year_.

His muscles have greatly deteriorated from lack of use. One would think he hasn't been eating properly, nor been in the sunlight recently, due to how thin and pale he was. But they kept him on a feeding tube regularly, food had nothing to do with anything. His hair looked extremely greasy, often making Iris wonder how much they bathe him here. He didn't smell bad, and Iris assumed it was from them bathing him, but people in coma's may not be able to sweat either.

Iris' phone turned on, greeting her with the brightest screen setting it could manage. Once it was loaded, she saw there was sixteen missed calls from Eddie.

"Sixteen calls, dad," she said, showing her dad her phone. Joe snorted.

"Yep, that's the right guy. Be lucky it wasn't a relative or something," he said, and Iris rolled her eyes at him before calling him back.

He didn't answer.

"Goddamnit," Iris mumbled, before saying into the phone, "Eddie, you called sixteen times. You knew I was visiting Barry, and I don't have my phone on when I visit him. Call twice, and if I don't answer either time, I can't talk. Got it? Love you," she finished, before hanging up.

She did love Eddie, but sometimes he was just… a lot to handle. Sixteen missed calls was nothing unusual, and he was _way_ too overprotective, but they both had a love stronger than words could explain for each other. She just wished he would let her see her comatose best friend without interruption every once in awhile.

"I should get back to the station," Joe said with a sigh, as they approached the car they. "Barry doesn't wake up soon, Singh may have to fire him," he added with a sad tone. Iris furrowed her eyebrows. "Isn't he on medical leave?" She asked, and Joe sighed. "Medical leave can only last so long, Iris. We can try to fill out another form if he doesn't wake up by January, but once the current one runs out…" The words, _He may lose his job,_ went unsaid. Iris looked down.

"Of all the people to get struck by lightning, why did it have to be Barry? He's the nicest person on this awful planet," she said quietly, and Joe put a hand on her shoulder.

"He'll wake up, Iris," he said softly. "He has to."

"Barry, it's been a year and a half, and I don't even know what to say to you anymore. Dad's lost hope, we somehow managed to keep your job, but in three weeks Singh's going to have to let you go. Trust me, he doesn't want to, but he has no choice. Maybe you can get it back if… _when_ , you wake up," Iris said sadly. "Wow, even _I'm_ starting to have doubts. Barry, that's when you know it's bad. You know, I had to talk dad out of pulling the plug again yesterday. I had to pull the whole, "If you pull the plug, you kill your son, and how would you be able to live with that" thing. Even Grandma Esther had to chime in, and you know how she is about getting to emotional. She's a strong woman, Barry, but like I've told you countless times, this coma has affected everyone," Iris finished, before leaning down and pressing a soft kiss to his forehead.

"Don't die on us, please," she whispered, before grabbing her purse and leaving the room. Her and Joe stopped going together about two months ago, around the same time Joe lost all motivation to do anything. Iris got lucky when Eddie asked her to move in with him, because after she moved out, the house became a pigsty.

Did she feel bad for moving out? Of course she did. Her dad was barely holding on. But she would go there every day, make sure he was ok, and sometimes make him dinner (and take a shower). She would clean up the house for him about once a week, hoping that a clean house would make it better.

It was honestly scary how bad her dad had had gotten. He's lost even more weight, he almost never eats or sleeps (even though she has Eddie to make sure he eats lunch at the station), and she didn't know who she was worried for more: Barry or her dad.

But no matter what condition her dad was in, she wouldn't let it hold her back from chasing her dream job as a journalist. Central City Picture News gave her a job offer about a month ago, and she wasn't about to refuse it because of her dad or Barry. She's been wanting to work at CCPN since she discovered her love for writing.

She pulled up to her dad's house, and parked the car. She had a strong feeling that she was going to be eating there tonight.

Opening the door, she looked around to find the house not already dirty, which hasn't happened.

"Dad?" She called out, stepping into the house. What she didn't expect was Grandma Esther shouting from upstairs, "He's up here!"

Iris practically ran upstairs, excited to see her grandma, and for the fact that she didn't need to babysit her dad anymore.

"Grandma Esther! Hi," Iris said, smiling, then looked at her dad, who looked annoyed as hell. "You ok, dad?" She asked, and Joe just groaned.

"Someone has to keep him in check, and I figured his mother should be doing that instead of his daughter," Esther said, and Iris gave her a hug. "Thank you so much," she said, feeling as if a small weight was taken off her shoulder.

"Barry, it's been awhile since I've visited you, and I'm sorry. But, it's officially been two years since you were struck by lightning. Barry, you're brain keeps showing activity, why won't you just wake up? You lost your job, your rent ran out - ok, maybe not good motivators. Dad's barely holding it together, _I'm_ barely holding it together, seeing as it's been _months_ since I last talked to you. Barry, it's been _months_. It's been _years_ , actual _years_ , since we've been able to talk to each other. That's too long. Your dad thought you died in the coma, until they brought him to see you again. I guess that's my fault, I haven't had the guts to visit him. I just… I feel like everything's on my shoulders right now. You know, Eddie proposed to me, and I wanted to say yes, I really did, but it occurred to me that you barely even know him. Plus, it wouldn't feel too great to wake up to your best friend being married," Iris said to Barry, who's just as lifeless as ever.

It's been two years. _Two years_. Iris didn't know how much longer she could do this. Her and Joe talked about it, and they both decided that if he was still comatose by year three, they would pull the plug. But if things came to that, she would never forgive herself.

 _"_ Nine months, Barry. You've got nine months to wake up, please, just _wake up. Wake up, please Barry, wake. up."_

"Eight months, Barry. I don't know how much more I have to tell you. I hate myself more each day, for setting this… this _deadline_ on your life, but what if you never wake up? You know, at least our last memory was a good one. Well, until I got mugged. Hey, even though we didn't get to watch it get launched… or explode, we still got one last good memory, right?"

"Six months, oh my god, I don't know if I can go through with this. I haven't visited you for a month, but I got a promotion with my job, and I've been busy. You understand, right? Anyway, I have to go, but I'll be back soon, I promise."

Two months passed when Barry finally showed the first signs of movement. Four months from the day they were going to unplug him from the machines.

Joe was the first one they called, and then Iris. The duo, and Eddie, met at the hospital, eagerly awaiting news.

"Barry's been out for nearly three years, so don't overwhelm him. It'll definitely take time for him to get used to this new world," The nurse warned them, before letting them in the room Barry was in.

He showed no movement for about three more hours, until his hand twitched, taking the three by surprise. It was about five minutes before it twitched again.

It went on like this, Joe and Iris hovering over Barry, for hours, with Eddie by the wall, until Barry finally squinted open his eyes. As fast as that happened, he screwed them shut. He tried to say something, but instead let out a dry cough. He hasn't used his vocal chords for _years_ , after all.

"Barry, oh my god, _Barry_ ," Iris practically sobbed as he tried to open his eyes again. Joe quickly went to turn off the lights, making it easier for Barry to look up at them.

"Wh't.." Barry could barely say the word, but both Joe and Iris understood what he meant.

Or so they thought they did.

"You were struck by lightning, you were in a coma for nearly three years, Barry," Iris told him, and Barry suddenly furrowed his eyebrows. He tried shaking his head (but not really succeeding), and moved to get up. He didn't get much in that, though, as his arms immediately failed him and he ended back on the hospital bed.

"Barry, are you ok?" Joe asked, and Barry looked at him with worried eyes. He then looked around, as if trying to identify where he was, then looked at Iris, tears building up in his eyes.

"Barry, you're at St. Andrews, you were - " This time, Barry somehow managed to successfully shake his head.

"Fl'sh," he tried saying, clearly straining his voice. Iris furrowed her eyebrows.

"What the hell is a flash?"


	2. Chapter 2

The next few weeks passed quickly but silently, with Barry not saying much. Sure, it hurt him to talk, but there seemed like… _more_. Like, Barry was more confused. He would always analyze Iris, and look at her left hand in worry, like there was something wrong with it.

Every time Eddie came to visit him, Barry would look surprised. He would never take his eyes off him, looking at him like he was hallucinating, like Eddie shouldn't be there. Not in a bad way, though. They couldn't really explain it.

About two weeks since he woke up, Barry attempted to speak again. "C'tlin?" He asked Joe and Iris, voice scratchy as hell. The two looked at each other confused. "Barry, who's Caitlin?" Iris asked, and Barry looked like he wanted to cry.

"St'r labs? C'sco? R'lph, Harry?" Barry asked again, and Joe raised an eyebrow. "Ralph? Like Ralph Dibney, the bad cop?" He asked, and Barry's eyes widened, as he attempted to nod his head.

"I'm sorry, Barry, no one's heard from him since he got fired," Joe said, and Barry shook his head. "El… el'on'ated man," he croaked, and Iris looked at him confused. "Barry, what are you talking about?" She asked.

Barry looked at her, and tears finally began to surface. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but closed it again. About a minute later, he said something else. "Pl'se… leave," he said, in a barely audible tone, and the two West's hearts broke at this.

"We'll come back later, ok Barry?" Iris asked, putting a hand on his arm, and Barry slowly nodded. Iris and Joe then looked at each other, then reluctantly, they left. Barry stared at the door, a tear finally rolling down his face.

He was so confused. What the hell was going on, and why didn't anyone know what he was talking about? Iris asked Caitlin to be her maid of honor at their wedding, right? And she knew Cisco was his best friend, so why didn't Iris and Joe remember them? And what about the Flash? Iris was constantly going on about how they were the flash, and he wasn't in it alone, so why did she suddenly not know what it was? Most importantly, why wasn't she wearing her wedding ring?

She said something about Barry being struck by lightning and being in a coma for a few years, but he didn't remember getting struck in a fight. The last thing he remembered was finally defeating DeVoe, then at the celebratory party there was an attack, and he woke up in a hospital bed. Not STAR Labs, an actual hospital.

And why wasn't he healed by now? Maybe this was a hallucination. He could only assume that, especially since Eddie's still alive. Cisco had to be working on a way to get him out, right? They probably called Wally to take care of the city, while he was… _wherever_ he was.

Speaking of Wally, where was he? Was he just… _not_ in this hallucination? He would've visited by now, right? Same with Cisco and Caitlin, they must not be here, especially if Iris and Joe didn't know who they were.

Why did it have to be him? He didn't want to be thrown into a like where he wasn't the flash, he _lived_ for being the flash. His speed helped him tremendously, and even though he nearly lost his job and everyone knew by now that he was the flash, things were going better than they were before the coma.

A nurse came in to check on him, just like she did everyday at that time, interrupting his thoughts.

"Hey, Barry, everything ok today? You look like you've been crying," the nurse asked, and Barry just stared at the ceiling, not saying anything.

The nurse just put on a smile and said, "Well, hopefully some good news will cheer you up. You seem determined to get better, and after a talk with your doctors and guardian, we think you'll be able to start Physical Therapy next week!"

Barry then looked at her, eyes widened. "Heal… speed," he croaked out, and the nurse chuckled.

"Yes, I suppose you're healing quicker than normal," she said, as she finished changing his IV bag. The hospital didn't want Barry eating solid foods quite yet, but they did let him have a protein shake or a smoothie every once in awhile.

Barry shook his head frantically, closing his eyes as more tears fell from his eyes. "Hey, hey, that's a good thing! That means you may get out of here quicker!" The nurse tried encouraging, but Barry shook his head. "Speed… heal… flash," he said, this time taking his time so it sounded clearer.

"Barry, I'm sorry, I don't know what you mean. Can you drink this?" She asked, handing him a cup of water he didn't realise she had. The doctors and nurses have him drink at least a cup of water per hour, in hopes to get his vocal cords in action again. It was working, just not as fast as they'd like.

Barry took the cup with her help, and drank the water. He couldn't really hold things yet, he was too weak. He was working on it, though. The faster he could get out of here, the faster he can figure out what the hell was going on.

"Well, Barry, I'll be back later to give you dinner," The nurse smiled, before leaving. Barry just rolled his eyes. He missed actual dinners, with solid food. Not they IV's they gave him, those were… well, tasteless.

He's pleaded several times, or at least /tried, for them to give him real food, but their answer is always the same: "Maybe in a couple weeks." It really pissed him off.

All he hoped for at this point, was for Cisco to hurry his ass up and get him the hell out of here.

"Do you think Barry's ok?" Iris asked, once Barry kicked her and Joe out.

"I don't know, honey, but what would you do if you just found out you missed nearly three years of your life?" Joe retorted. Iris scoffed.

"Dad, he keeps talking about… _Flash_. What the hell is a flash? And what about the people he mentioned? Cisco, Caitlin, Harry-"

"Ralph Dibney," Joe cut her off. "That's the real question, why did he suddenly ask about Dibney? The two hate each other, even before Dibney got fired. So why now, after he woke up?" Joe asked, more to himself than to Iris. Iris shrugged.

"I'm worried, dad. I know he's going to physical therapy next week, so he can start getting physically better, but what about mentally? He can't go into the real world, thinking about people who don't exist," she said.

"Barry will be fine," Joe assured her, "He woke up, didn't he?"

Iris sighed, as she called Eddie. "I need to tell Eddie I'm on my way home. He'd get worried if I didn't," she said, putting her phone up to her ear.

Three rings later, and Eddie answered. " _Hello_?" He asked.

"Hey babe, I just got done visiting Barry, I should be home in about twenty minutes," she said. Joe and Iris drove two cars, just so one wouldn't have to go out of the way for the other.

" _Alright. How is he today?_ " Eddie asked, as usual.

"Same old, same old. He talked a bit more today, but it was a bunch of nonsense no one could understand," Iris told him, looking at Joe.

" _Is he ok? He keeps looking at me like I shouldn't be there every time I go with you to visit. Not in the way that he doesn't want me there, but moreso confused as to why I am_ ," Eddie said, sounding slightly concerned.

"I was thinking the same thing, I'm not sure," Iris said, looking back at the hospital doors her and her dad just walked through. "Well, I'm about to get in the car, see you in a few," she finished, ending the call.

"What'd he say?" Joe asked, curious as to what Iris was thinking the same thing about.

"Nothing, just talked about how Barry would stare at him when he visits," Iris said, waving him off.

"God, Iris, hopefully it isn't brain damage. If it is, I will sue the hospital, I swear to god. They said he was fine, but there's something not right," Joe retorted, as they came closer to his car.

"Yea…" Iris sighed, not really knowing what else to say.

They said their goodbyes to each other, and parted ways. If only the hospital could figure out what was wrong with Barry, everything would be fine again.

Barry finally gained enough strength to pick things up. The nurse gave him a stress ball to get his hands working again, and it paid off. He could watch what he wanted on TV now.

There was nothing good on the TV. Supposedly being in a coma for two years made you miss out on a lot of things.

He finally settled on the news, so he could see what was going on in this hallucination world today. There wasn't anything interesting going on, but he didn't have the energy to change it.

Barry closed his eyes, too tired to watch anything. He left the TV on for background noise, though. The hospital was too damn silent.

He was almost asleep, he could feel himself slowly losing consciousness, when suddenly, he heard it.

" _Harrison Wells trial - Wells pleads innocent, yet again."_


	3. Chapter 3

A week later, and all Barry could think about was this "Trial of Harrison Wells."

He slept through the whole report, so he tried getting Joe or Iris, and even Eddie, to tell him what's going on, but none of them understood what he meant.

He would attempt to say Wells' name, still bitter about Eobard (because this wells looked _just_ like he did, wheelchair and all), but they would think it's more of his delusions and wave him off. It pissed Barry off, especially since in this world, Harrison Wells has been the face of the news for two years.

Physical therapy made things worse. They would always do something, something very small and unhelpful, then tell him he was getting _so_ much better. Clearly, he wasn't, or he'd be able to get out of his prison cell, otherwise known as his hospital room.

Barry hated being confined to his room. Hell, he wasn't confined to his room, he was confined to his bed. He didn't have enough strength to even _stand_ for more than five second, let alone walk. Of course, maybe he would be, if the goddamn physical therapist would let him _work_ on standing.

What made matters worse was how much Barry wanted to talk to Felicity and Oliver, and let them know he was ok. Joe and Iris probably didn't know them, he didn't ask. But they also wouldn't give him a phone. Apparently, they cut off his old one after year one of the coma.

Barry wanted to scream, but he couldn't. He could barely say one word at a time, let alone let a loud volume of noise out of his mouth at an extended time. He just felt so… _claustrophobic_ here, not being able to go out and find his friends. He had to find the Cisco and Caitlin of this dream world. He knew for a fact that they wouldn't know him, not if he didn't end up being moved to STAR Labs, but he had an idea of where they were.

Well, Caitlin at least. Cisco would be the mystery.

Caitlin was most likely working at Mercury Labs, just like she was for a bit after the singularity. After all, she had two doctorates and a bachelor. What else would she do with those, become a bartender?

Barry knew Felicity could probably find Cisco, and confirm where Caitlin was, if Iris and Joe would _let him call them_ , or anyone for that matter. He's dropped plenty of hints that he wanted to make a phone call.

Another discover Barry made in this universe were the Lichtenberg Figures covering his body. When he woke up the first time, he didn't have any evidence that he was ever struck by lightning. But when the nurse came in to help him take his first conscious bath (apparently they gave him baths when he was sleeping, so he wouldn't be disturbed; that information still disturbed him anyway), he found pale pink scars that would branch out like lightning on his body. He say them go down to about the middle of his thighs, and he (slowly) traced them up to just above his collarbone, and halfway down his shoulder to his elbow, where they slowly faded out. They were pretty cool, but he hoped they would go away one day. How would he be able to swim with scars all over his body, deeming him a freak?

A day before Barry had his next Physical Therapy appointment, Iris and Joe visited him again. They started coming every other day, as per Barry's request. He didn't want them to put their lives on hold just for him, even if this is just a dream.

"How are you today, Barr?" Iris asked, once they walked in. Barry just groaned, he learned that he was excellent at groaning from the nurses.

Joe laughed. "That good, huh?" He asked, and Iris just laughed with him. Barry rolled his eyes and reached for Iris. Or, more specifically, her phone. Not that she knew, of course.

"Barry, what do you want?" Iris asked, backing just out of reach of him. He sighed.

"Phone," he said, then added, "Felicity. Oliver," at the confused looks Iris gave him. "The people you met in Starling?" She asked, and Barry attempted a smile in response. Iris handed Barry her phone, and told him, "I transferred all your contacts to my phone when we disconnected yours, so when you woke up you could still contact people. Although, I can't say I wasn't tempted to call some of them, like, you know, _Oliver Queen_. Barry, when were you going to tell me you knew him?" She demanded, and Barry lifted one of his shoulders in a shrugging motion. He tried turning her phone on, but his hands were shaking as he attempted to push the button. Iris took her phone from Barry and successfully turned it on.

"Who do you want to call, Barry?" She asked, and Barry simply said, "Felicity."

Iris pulled up Felicity's name, and pressed call, before putting it on speaker and giving it back to Barry. Barry looked at Iris, and asked her and Joe, "Privacy? Please?"

Iris and Joe both nodded, and made their way into the hallway, just as Felicity answered the phone.

" _Hello? Who is this_?" Felicity asked, seeing as she didn't have Iris' number.

"Barry," Barry croaked out, and he heard a faint, " _Oh my god, Oliver, come here!_ " on the other end.

" _Wait, Barry, as in Barry Allen?_ " She quickly asked, just to make sure, and Barry heard footsteps on the other line.

"Yea," Barry said, smiling. She still remembered him, even in this world. He honestly was having doubts.

" _Barry, oh my god, I'm so glad you're ok_!" Felicity said, happily. "Me and Oliver both missed you, even if Oliver won't admit it."

" _Of course I'll admit it, Barry, things haven't been the same here, and it's your fault. You dimmed Felicity's light while you were in the coma,_ " another voice, Oliver said. Barry smiled.

"Sorry," Barry said, and Felicity quickly said, " _Don't be. You couldn't help getting struck by lightning, it's not like you can control the weather or anything."_

Barry felt the smile fall from his face. He couldn't control the weather, but both Clyde and Mark Mardon could. What if they were out there now, terrorizing people and robbing banks?

" _Barry? You ok?"_ Oliver asked, after they got no answer.

"Yea… Fine," Barry said, straining his words. Barry longed for the day he would be able to speak full sentences, but so far, he was on his own with speech. The hospital paid for a Physical therapist, but a speech therapist was on Joe and Iris.

" _Good_ ," Oliver said, before Felicity spoke up. " _So, is it ok if we come and visit for a few days? We expanded the team, so now we have more people to protect the city, and more chances for vacation days."_

Barry's smile returned to his face, as he said, "Yes… Please," as fast as he could. He could probably tell them about physical therapy when they got there.

"Alright, Barry, we'll be there in two days tops, alright?" Felicity asked, and Barry smiled. "Ok," he said, and with that, she hung up. Instead of calling for Iris and Joe, though, he just sat there and tried messing with Iris' phone.

Maybe the reason they haven't gotten him a new phone yet was because he couldn't make one work on his own. He finally managed to close out of the phone app, but the screen was a whole nother story. He would try to swipe to the left or right, and it would glitch out on how much pressure he was putting on it to stop the shaking.

He groaned in frustration, and put the phone on the bed as intensely as he could. Why couldn't he be normal again? It's been three weeks already, by week three the first time around, Barry was not only up and about, but he was in control of his powers, and fighting other meta humans like him. Who knew normal was so… so /hard?

Iris heard the loud groan, so she took that as her cue to go back in the room. "Everything ok, Barr?" She asked.

"Can't… do… _anything_ ," Barry choked out, closing his eyes and putting his hands to his face. "Useless…" he mumbled.

The two West's walked over to Barry and put their arms around him. "You're not useless, Barry, you couldn't help being struck by lightning," Joe assured him. Barry just looked down, and closed his eyes.

Joe and Iris both looked at each other, and took this as their cue to leave. "We'll be back in a couple days," Iris said, putting her hand on Barry. Barry just ignored her, and waited for them to leave. When they finally did leave, a few tears began to roll down Barry's face.

Why, of all people, did this have to happen to him? Why did _he_ have to be struck by lightning? Why did _he_ have to be confined to this hospital bed?

Oliver said something about the team being able to keep watching the city, did that mean he was still the Arrow? Were people calling him that everywhere now?

Maybe if he _was_ still the Arrow, he might know a little bit about what's happening. After all, he's probably faced weirder.

With that thought in mind, Barry fell asleep, ready for the days to come.

 **R &R, and updates every Thursday ^.^**


	4. Chapter 4

The days before Oliver and Felicity's arrival passed by slowly. Physical Therapy that did nothing, Joe and Iris visiting him and sending him looks of pity when they thought he wasn't looking, and the usual tube feeding. The nurses said that he could try solid food soon, but Barry was sure soon wouldn't happen before next year.

Barry made sure Oliver and Felicity came on days that Iris and Joe didn't, so he could discuss Arrow business with them and maybe find out more about his situation.

When the day finally came, Barry was ecstatic. Not that he could show it very well, of course, but still.

He had a rough day in physical therapy, they were trying walking for the first time. Honestly, what kind of hospital tries to get a coma patient walking on their fourth week awake? Maybe it was because he kept mentioning "speed healing" before he realised what was going on. The physical therapist must've gotten the wrong idea.

When they wheeled him back in, Felicity and Oliver were both seated in a chair, having a very heated discussion about… _something_. They immediately stopped talking when they saw Barry though.

"Oh my god, Barry, you're ok! Well, maybe not ok, but you're awake! Actually awake!" Felicity said, running over to his bedside.

Barry smiled as he was lifted back into the hospital bed. He hated that they did this in front of his friends. He hated that they did this at all.

When he woke up the first time, he was walking within the _hour_ of waking up, and now he could barely stand, he couldn't get into bed on his own, and he still couldn't eat solid foods. Every day that passed made him feel more like a failure, but it also made him want to figure out what was going on more. Now that Felicity and Oliver were here, maybe they could help.

"How are you, Barry?" Oliver asked, and Barry looked at the older man. He didn't see it until now, but Oliver definitely looked different from when the Dominators attacked. This Oliver looked more tired, like he hasn't had proper rest in years. He looked more buff, definitely like he'd been working out more.

Felicity also looked different from the last time he saw her. That Felicity seemed more chipper, had more enthusiasm in the way she sat and talked. This Felicity just seemed… sad. Like there was a weight on her chest that wouldn't be lifted no matter what.

They both looked tired as well.

" 'm okay," Barry responded after a minute, once he was settled into his bed. There was so much more that he wanted to say, but he didn't know how to say it. He could barely talk as it was.

"That's good at least. Okay is better than not okay, which would be completely normal considering your condition," Felicity said, and Oliver very obviously held her shoulder to stop her from talking even more.

"We're glad you're awake, Barry. Diggle wanted to come visit, but he was busy," Oliver said, and Barry just shrugged.

" 't's okay," he said, and looked at Oliver once again. He couldn't be crazy, Oliver was still the Arrow, right?

" 'rrow?" Barry asked, and Felicity smiled.

"At least your memory works," she said, and Oliver looked down.

"Now is… probably not the best time nor place to talk about that Barry," he said softly, and Barry's eyes lit up.

"You're… still… Arrow?" He said slowly, trying to make his words clear for the duo.

"Yeah, he still is," Felicity said, looking back at Oliver. They were both confused as to what was bringing this up.

"C'sco… Ram'n…" Barry asked, and Oliver furrowed his eyebrows. "We don't know who that is," Oliver said softly, and Barry shook his head. He looked at Felicity and said, "F'nd him?" he asked, slowly but confident. Felicity took a second, but then nodded her head. "I'll try, but can we know why?" she asked, and Barry shook his head.

"Lat'r," he said, and Felicity nodded.

"Okay, Barry," she said, and Oliver looked at his watch.

"It's getting late, we should probably get back to our hotel," he said, and Felicity sighed.

"Do we have to?" she said, and Barry shrugged.

"C'me back?" he asked, and the duo both nodded.

"Of course," Oliver said, giving Barry a small smile. Barry returned the smile, glad that _someone_ believed he wasn't crazy. Even if they didn't know all of the details, they wanted to help him instead of questioning him.

It may have been small, but it meant the world to Barry right then.

"Cisco Ramon," Felicity muttered to herself as she looked the man up on her computer. She didn't know why Barry wanted her to look up such a random person, but the man just woke up from a coma. She might as well do the one thing he asked her to.

"Are you really looking that guy up?" Oliver asked, putting a new shirt on. Felicity looked up at him as if he was insane.

"Of course I am. Did you see how desperately he wanted me to look this guy up?" she asked, not believing Oliver in the moment.

"What if it's a trap? What if this guy could kill us?" Oliver asked, with a hint of edge to his voice. Felicity gave Oliver another look. "Barry was unconscious for _three years_ , Oliver. When would he have time to plot our murder? Why would he even _want_ to send someone after us?" she asked, exasperated. The computer made a noise, interrupting the conversation.

"Looks like this Cisco person is pretty lowkey," Felicity said. "He worked at STAR Labs until the explosion, and now works at CCPD as an assistant Forensic Technician. He applied at Mercury Labs, but they didn't hire anyone after the explosion, with the exception of one female who has history there," Felicity said, and Oliver looked at the screen.

"What about his childhood, or his record?" He asked, and Felicity looked at him. "Are you kidding?" She asked, and Oliver raised an eyebrow. Felicity sighed, and looked back at the computer.

"He grew up in Central City, and has a clean record all throughout college. He has a degree in mechanical engineering, and he's only really worked at STAR Labs, where he interned in college and was employed immediately after he graduated," she said, and looked back at Oliver.

"That good enough for you?" She asked, and Oliver sighed.

"I don't trust this," he said, and Felicity sighed.

"Of course you don't," she muttered.

After about a minute of silence, Felicity said, "Barry probably wants us to contact this kid."

Oliver scoffed. "What would we say? 'Hey, some kid who's been comatose for a year that you probably don't know has been asking about you.' How well do you think that would end?" Oliver asked, then added, "And besides, he could barely talk today. What would he even say to this kid?"

Felicity sighed. "Barry just woke up. It's the least we could do for him," she said, and Oliver looked down.

"We'll visit him tomorrow, tell him what we found, and stay out of it from then on," Oliver said very simply, and went to lie in bed.

Felicity looked at the computer screen once more. What could Barry possibly want with this kid?

 **IMPORTANT AUTHORS NOTE**

 **so, you guys may not know this, but I've deleted my AO3 account (which i kinda regret ngl), which means none of my works are being updated anymore. My plan is to get everything up to date on my works here, and that's that. no more updates, unless i impulsively write one but dont count on that.**

 **Anyway, i thought you guys should know that you shouldn't expect anything more from me, and i'm truly sorry.**

 **If you have any questions, PM me or email me - crawfordcanary**


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